A Lady’s Guide to Gossip and Murder
by Dianne Freeman
Series: Countess of Harleigh Mystery, #2
Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction
Release Date: June 25, 2019
Pages: 306
Get from: Library | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo
My Rating: ★★★★⯪
Review
NOTE: This review is based on an eBook I borrowed from my local public library system
There are **SPOILERS** in this review, especially if you haven’t read book one.
Ms. Freeman’s second entry in the Countess of Harleigh Mystery series may actually be better than the first. This time, I felt I was moving at about the same pace as the characters with regard to the mystery, rather than waiting for them to catch up at any point.
The storyline was interesting, the supporting characters were woven in excellently — I didn’t suspect them of being integral to the plot when introduced — and the mystery kept me guessing right to the end.
I’m sorry Alicia Stoke-Whitney was not in this installment. I’m curious to see if she’ll show up again later, or if she was just for book one.
George Hazelton, of course, continues to play a large roll, and has finally managed to convince Frances that his interest is real. Based on the ending of A Lady’s Guide to Gossip and Murder, I think they’ll be engaged in book 3, but maybe it’s just a tease.
Inspector Delaney is much nicer in this entry. I suppose it helps that Frances is not a suspect this time. He goes so far as to tell her, “Lady Harleigh, I’ve come to enjoy working with you in this unofficial capacity.” I wonder if he’ll continue to warm to her, or if his acceptance this time was because she was unofficially sanctioned to work on the case by Mr. Hazelton’s involvement.
Aunt Hetty is back, playing a vital role in this mystery as well. Her page time, though, is about the same, or perhaps less, than in book one.
Unfortunately, Lily played almost no part in this book. She was — somewhat understandably —rather petulant about Frances spending so much time on the case while she, herself, was planning an engagement party. Instead, we see quite a bit of Lottie Deaver, Lily’s friend from New York, who makes herself surprisingly useful to the investigation. I can’t help but wonder if she’s going to disappear from the series as well, like Alicia from book 1.
Overall, A Lady’s Guide to Gossip and Murder is fabulous, and I eagerly anticipate reading future entries in this series.
Notable Quote
Chapter 15: “There are bound to be disasters.”
She sniffed. “Not if I plan properly.”
I shushed her. “No matter how well you plan. Disasters are a fact of life. Just accept it. Yes, you can and should plan carefully, but you are dealing with humans and they all have their own lives, plans, and needs. There’s no telling what can happen when you gather a group of them together. The important thing to remember is when disaster strikes you must face it with aplomb. You cannot fall apart.”
Have you read A Lady’s Guide to Gossip and Murder? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to hear from you.
Thanks for reading to the end, I hope you enjoyed my post. Make sure to subscribe to my blog or follow me on Instagram so you don’t miss any posts. I generally post at least once a week.
